Tuckasegee River Watershed

The Tuckasegee River stretches 60 miles, and its watershed drains 655 square miles in Western North Carolina. The watershed is home to six lakes, innumerable waterfalls, and portions of the Nantahala National Forest and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Tuckasegee flows entirely within ancestral Cherokee lands, now Jackson and Swain Counties and the Qualla Boundary. Its name likely comes from the Cherokee village of Tsiksitsi (meaning “crawling terrapin,” for the sluggish movement of the waters) that once stood on its banks.

The river begins its course near Cashiers, NC, in the Sky Island biome at the confluence of Panthertown and Greenland Creeks, then flows northwest through the communities of Tuckasegee, Cullowhee, Webster, Dillsboro, Whittier, and Bryson City. Along the way, the river is joined by many tributaries, the largest of which is the Oconaluftee River. The Tuck empties into Fontana Lake just downstream of Bryson City, and ultimately joins the Little Tennessee River.